


Empty Thrones

by BlandGhost



Category: Dragon Age: Inquisition
Genre: Action & Romance, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Angst, Explicit Language, F/F, F/M, Fluff, Gen, Humor, M/M, Modern Girl in Thedas, Multi, Non-Inquisitor OC, Other, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Out of Character behavior, POV Multiple, Slow Burn, Slow Updates, weird non-canon things
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-04-22
Updated: 2020-04-22
Packaged: 2021-03-01 21:41:37
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,118
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23764015
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/BlandGhost/pseuds/BlandGhost
Summary: Undergraduate Althea Foster woke up in Thedas just after The Battle of Ostagar. Lost, scared, and unable to speak the Common Tongue; Thea didn’t even want to think about her fate if Aveline and the Hawke family hadn’t taken her under their wing. Fortunately, she had been a bit obsessed about the games, and armed with the knowledge she was determined to stop the tragedies that occured in the Champions story.That was ten years ago.During those years Thea has learned a few things about Thedas and herself. One, plans never went the way she wanted. Two, Nugs were creepy little bastards. Three, Thea can’t die- or at least she doesn’t stay dead. Whether that was because she was an abomination, demon, or something else she didn’t know. But, some fates are worse than death and Thea is determined to keep her secrets.Unfortunately, that might prove to be a bit difficult once she is forced into joining the Inquisition…(Work Title subject to change!!!)
Relationships: TBD!
Comments: 4
Kudos: 23





	Empty Thrones

Thea wasn’t sure how long she had watched the hazy sky, her mind a blank page as ash and snow lazily drifted back down to earth. She blinked. What was she doing here again? Her mind slowly piecing together the events that lead to her laying on the ground blankly staring at the sky.

She was at the Temple of Sacred Ashes. There was an event, a meeting- an important one. She came because… her mind drew a blank. She remembered she was a hired mercenary; a guard to be a “neutral party.” The meeting was with… with…

A burst of agony suddenly blazed through her body, distracting her from thoughts. It felt as though her lungs had been starved for air and it felt as if she was inhaling glass and fire. The sound of her heartbeat deafened her and she only now could she feel a cold that had settled into her bones. Through gritted teeth Thea tried to take slow deep breaths. From experience she knew there was nothing she could do about the pain, but she liked to think it helped.

Only when the flame died in her lungs and the ice thawed in her veins that Thea's other senses slowly returned to her. The scent of blood, magic, and ash clogged her nose and made her eyes sting. Once indistinct blobs of white, grey, and green focused into trees, stone, and rubble. She could feel the cold sting of snow that had slipped between the tears in her coat and armor as it melted against her skin.

Thea rolled over onto her side, a coat of snow and ash sliding off of her as something sticky and wet trickled out of a gap in her armor. She put a hand over the injury in a futile attempt to slow the bleeding- only to feel the wound was already beginning to heal itself.

 _‘Fourteen_.’ Thea thought, grimacing at the sight of her blood staining the snow. She has been in Thedas for ten years and has now died and revived fourteen times. Wryly, she wondered if that was a high or low number considering what she went through Kirkwall.

Danger now hummed at her edges of her senses, but her mind was still fumbling to orient itself. She needed to think. Decide what to do next, but questions nagged at her, cluttering her thoughts. Why was she at the Temple again? What was she doing out here? When did she die? Who had killed her? Would her secret be safe?

A thunderous rumble filled the sky followed by a loud crack of energy that set her teeth on edge. Thea pushed herself into a sitting position and glanced over in the east, at the source of the clamor and magic.

The Breach roared and tore at the sky before her, and for a moment she forgot how to breathe. Black heavy clouds swirled around the sky, and in its center shone the hole in the Veil. The green energy had formed a vortex of magic and power and in its rage Thea could see that it had torn both the temple and mountain asunder, throwing shards of stone far and wide. What hadn’t been incinerated or shattered had been uprooted; large fragments of earth were suspended in the sky like phantom islands. The Breaches magic crackled against her skin while the air felt thin and difficult to breathe underneath its presence.

Thea forced air into her lungs again, vaguely remembered the first time she had seen the Breach in-game. She had been cozied up on her bed, dressed in warm pajamas and snuggled up in her blankets. Safe. 

Hell, she might’ve even spent ten minutes fiddling with the camera to get the perfect screenshot of it. 

But, when confronted by Breach in person it was like facing a hurricane. Its power made Thea feel small, weak, and insignificant. Suddenly, it felt ridiculous that the Inquisitor could even fix that. It was like expecting someone to stop a tsunami or an earthquake. 

Not for the first time, Thea wondered what the hell she was doing here. Back at home she would’ve finished school years ago and began her career as an anthropologist. Hell, she might’ve even been married by now- she was in her early thirties now, so it wasn’t an impossibility. 

But, no. She was stuck in a world where magic, demons, slavery, and literal tears in the fabric for reality was a norm. Thea supposed she should be grateful she hadn’t been the unfortunate soul with the anchor eating away at their life.

Suddenly, Thea remembered why she had gone to the Temple in the first place. She had wanted to try to get Fen’Harel orb before Corypheus and prevent this whole mess. Obviously she had been unsuccessful since she had woken up far away from the temple, covered in her own blood and staring at a big hole in the sky. 

Thea still couldn’t remember how everything went wrong, but one thing was certain. She had failed. Again. 

She shook the depressing thought. She didn't have the luxury to wallow in self-pity. Instead, she needed to figure out the situation and to plan what to do next. The Breach was still open, but the game never did mention how long it was open before the Inquisitor closed it.

Maybe she should offer her assistance to Haven? Help mitigate the damage from the demons, act as an advisor of sorts. Or, at least a medic, Thea had enough experience working with Anders in his clinic. She could join the fledgling Inquisition.

She grimaced at the idea. It wasn’t that Thea didn’t want to help, rather she just wasn’t sure she wanted to be in the center of the storm again. From her experience in Kirkwall, Thea learned that she was more helpful as an outside influence than someone directly in the middle. Besides, Thea wasn’t sure she could deal with the “Inner Circle” either. Cassandra would probably treat her like an abomination, Solas was literally the cause of this entire situation , and Varric…

Well, shit. What was she supposed to say to Varric? _“Hey buddy! Sorry I disappeared five years ago_ **_right_ ** _when Kirkwall went to hell. Where was I? That’s a damn fine question that I’m not gonna answer. Oh! How’s Hawk by the way? Did he find somebody new?”_

She’d rather cut off her own foot than have that conversation.

Besides, if anyone at the Inquisition ever discovered her unique condition she’d probably be treated as an undead, an abomination, or a half-spirit thing. And, unlike a certain spirit of Compassion, she didn’t have the ability to make people forget about her whenever it was convenient. 

Honestly, it would be best if Thea just avoided the whole thing. Maybe she’d work as one of Leliana’s contacts or as a distant, _distant_ agent later- once the Inquisition was settled.

Thea felt a familiar pull of magic as her companion slowly formed itself from her shadow. Muninn, as Thea had dubbed it, had been one of the first things she encountered in Thedas and her constant companion over the years.

The spirit, or at least Thea called it one, was an odd amalgamation of wolf and raven. A raven head molded onto a wolf body while a pair of ebony wings sprouted from its back. It’s body, although similar to most wolves in size and shape, still had its differences. Muninns paws were longer with articulated joints and sharp black talons about an inch long. Black feathers that originated from its head had blended thickly into the fur on its chest while a trail of smoother feathers ran across its back and shoulders into powerful wings. 

Actually, she wasn’t even sure if Muninn was a spirit. When she had asked it, Munnin had considered the question as it didn’t know itself. Slowly, thinking it through itself Muninn claimed to be an aspect of Thea that had been given form when she entered this plane. Thea wasn’t sure if she believed it, but Munnin had been satisfied with its answer.

“You’re awake.” Thea said, running her fingers through the spirits feathers and earning herself a soft rumble from the spirit.

 _‘I am.’_ Muninn confirmed before it opened its yellow eyes to watch the breach. A moment of silence before it continued, _‘The Fade is in chaos.’_

Thea sighed, dropping her hands. “I’m not surprised. Looks like our plan didn’t really pan out.”

_‘Neither did the Wolf’s.’_

“True. But, we already knew it wouldn’t.”

Muninn rumbled a little in agreement before turning its amber gaze to the girl. It's question was clear in its eyes. What now?

Thea nibbled at her bottom lip. They were god-knows-where on the Frostbacks, unarmed and in the middle of what was basically a warzone. Meanwhile, whatever remained of the Conclave were locked in combat with an endless stream of demons. If Thea didn’t want to get entangled in the Inquisition and not die again, she would need to get off this mountain without bumping into any of the human patrols or wandering demons.

An unrealistic goal, but sometimes Thea liked to pretend she was an optimist. 

So, with a groan Thea stood. She knew that with Muninn's presence, her wounds had finished healing. The spirit seemed to be tied to Thea’s own lifeforce so if it could form a body then that meant Thea had enough strength to move. 

Still, the girl swayed momentarily from lightheadedness as her body tried to circulate blood to her head. Her wounds may have been healed, but that didn’t mean she had all her blood back.

Fortunately, she still had armor, but not her sword and shield. That meant she hadn’t died in the explosion. If she had, Thea doubted there would’ve been anything left. She remembered walking through the burned remains of the Temple in the game, watching smoke and flame leak from the ruins while the victims corpses were frozen in ash, macabre statues of their last moments. 

No, her armor wouldn’t have survived that.

Still, it was in poor condition. When she had joined the mercenary group, the Silver Guards, she had been careful her equipment was that of an average mercenary; simple, well-used, but efficient. Now the breastplate sported dents in various places while the leather and chainmail had been torn in multiple areas. Judging by the bloodstains, she had been killed in combat, probably a wound on her abdomen.

Her main sword was gone, as well as the shield. But not the daggers in her boots. So, whoever killed her didn’t have the care or time to properly search her. But they did take her main weapons. Maybe her body had been dumped to avoid raising an alarm? However, it didn’t make sense to drag her corpse all the way out here. Maybe she had been killed here and a desperate scout pilfered the weapons from her corpse. 

Normally the dead wouldn’t need them. 

She scanned her surroundings. The area around her didn’t look like there had been fighting. But, it was hard to tell with the aftershock of the Rift explosion throwing snow and debris everywhere. Hell, her own Sword N’ Board could’ve been thrown somewhere because of the aftershock. 

Fortunately, the shield had been mostly for show. Thea did have enough experience with them to properly block and avoid dislocating her shoulder in the process- Aveline had made sure of that. But, much to her chagrin, Thea had adopted a style more similar to Isabelle roguish fighting. 

A pang filled her with the thought of her old friends. Honestly, the two had been quick to take Thea and Merril under their wings. Once, Thea had joked to Merril that Aveline was their caring-overworked mother, while Isabelle was their fun-drunk aunt. It was obvious that the elf didn’t quite get the joke, but she at least understood its teasing tone. 

Another crack of magic from the Breach drew Thea out of her thoughts. She had wasted enough time reminiscing. “Muninn,” She said, pulling out her daggers, “Would you scout ahead?”

The spirit nodded once, before leaping into the air. Ebony wings snapped open, and Thea covered her face to protect it from the snow and debris that was kicked up by its flight. As it climbed the air Muninn changed its shape into a raven. After all, a bird attracted less attention than a griffon-like creature. 

Soon, she could feel a vision press at the back of her mind. It was Muninn's bird's eye view of the mountain. Thea closed her eyes, taking a moment to put everything into perspective before she decided on her direction.

South.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, I admit that Muninn is a strange concept- but, I did try to keep it within the realm of possibility within Thedas. Or at least in a way that made sense to me lol. 
> 
> _Anyway, thoughts, ideas, suggestions? I'd love to hear them in the comments below!_   
> 


End file.
